Apparatus for electroplating metal sheets.



2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Patented 0G13. 6, 1908.

H. L. HOLLIS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. I, i907.

LIE

APPARATUS FOR ELEGTROPLATING METAL SHEETS.

H. L. HOLLIS. APPARATUS FOR ELBGTROPLATING METAL SHEETS. APPLICATIONFILED AUG. 1, 1907.

900,1 69, Patented Oct. 6, 1908.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

wa'zzejes.' fave/afar' fm/.#60, m /fmfy' Haak; Ww 6.' y Ca/ZA @umfifa/vz@ HENRY L. HOLLIS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

'i APPARATUSFOR ELECTEOPLATING :METAL SHEETS.

No. 900,169. l

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 6, 1908-.

Application filed August 1, 1907. Serial No. 386,528.

To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY L. HOLLIS, citi zen of the -United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Ill1nois, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Apparatus forElectroplating Metal Sheets, of which the following is a full, clear,concise, and exact descriptlon, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to apparatus for electroplating metal sheets andconsists in providing suitable mechanism for conveying the sheetsvertically through ya bath.

My invention contemplates the provision of a plurality of verticalrotatable rollers asi sociated with driving mechanism and which are sodisposed with relation to each other as to convey the sheets through thebath when motion is imparted thereto, these rollers being spaced so thatone set of rollers engages the sheet before the preceding set releasesit, and in this way securing a continuous movement of the sheet throughthe bath.

One of the main objectsin the employment of my invention is to obtain acomplete and uniform coating on the entire surfaces of the sheets ofmetal as they are submerged and conveyed through a preferably heatedsolution.

My invention will be better understood, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings in which similar reference chal'- acters representlike parts throughout the figures. A l

Figure 1 is a plan view of the apparatus embodying the'preferredfeatures of my invention; Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof; Fi 3 is aplan view, showing the sets of rol ers in section and engaging a sheetof metal, and Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4 4 of Fig. 3.

The vat or tank 1 constructed preferably -of some non-corrosive materialcontains a solution 2 of any desired ingredients. This vat may be of anydesired length to meet various requirements, and extending across thetop thereof are cross-pieces 3, 3 to whichis secured a bar 4 runninglengthwise of the vat, and at suitable distances frames 5, 5 are alsosecured to this bar. In each of these frames a dove-tailed slide piece 6is provided enr-h of which has a bearing 7 at one end thereof andthrough which passes a stem 8 which extends downwardly through thedove-tailed piece 6 and is secured to the roller 9.

l0 designates a pinion which is keyed to the stem 8 and which mesheswith a pinion 11 secured to a shaft 12 extending through the frame 5 andterminating in the roller 13 which is disposed opposite but out ofengagement with the roller 9. At the upper end of the shaft 12 and abovethe pinion 11 there is secured a worm wheel 14 meshing with a worm 15which is mounted upon a shaft 16 journaled in the arms or bearings 17,17 which extend upwardly from each of the frames 5, o.

By virtue of the foregoing mechanism the upper portion of plate 17 asshown in Fig. 4, engages between the rollers 9 and 13, and upon motionof the rollers the plate is carried vertically through the bath. Inorder to secure varying degrees of speed of the rollers, a cone pulley18 is mounted upon the shaft and may be belted to any source of power.It will be seen that upon rotation of this pulley, there will beconsequent rotation of the rollers 9 and 13 to carry the plate 17forward from one set of rollers to the succeeding set. At the bottom ofthe vat, the sheets are guided by a strip of insulating material 19,preferably of glass, and also insulated guides 20 and 21 are providedwhich may be mounted upon vertical members 22, 23 suitably secured tothe vat. When a sheet of metal is placed into the vat, it isplaced intoengagement' with the first set of rollers at one end of the vat, thesheet at the same time being guided by the insulating strips 20 and 21.The revolvin rollers convey the sheet of metal a su cient distance sothat the succeeding set of rollers will enga e it and carry it forwardbefore the prece ingrollers are released therefrom,

thus obtaining a continuous movement of erly engage the plate 17. In thepractice of my invention, sheets 27 and 28 suitably supported on crosspieces are adapted to form the anodes and are connected together withthe positive terminal of the generator `28', the sheet 17 in thisinstance forming the cathode, and the current will flow from thepositive terminal of the source of current through the conductors to theanodes 27 and 28 through the solution 2', and the plate 17', the roller13 andthe bar 14, back to the negative terminal of the source ofcurrent. The metal will thereupon be supplied from the anodes and willbe electrolytically conveyed and deposited upon the metal' sheets 17carried between the rollers, or an insoluble anode may be used and themetal obtained from the solution, to which from time to time additionsare made. The amount of metal depositedis dependent, of course, upon thecurrent strength and time during which the current flows and also theperiod in which the sheets remain in the solution or the period which isrequired for the sheets to be carried from one end of the vat to theother, this being regulated, of course, by the varying speeds of therollers.

l In order to agitate the solution, it may be drawn off through a pipe29 connected at one end of the vat, and by means of a eentrifugal pump30, the solution is pum ed I into the other end thereof, thus effectingsuflicient circulation of the solution. It is desirable that thesolution should be kept at an even temperature, and to this end I employsteam heating coils 31 which ass through the solution and may exhaustinto a pipe 32 surrounding the pipe 29. It will thus be apparent that noappreciable amount of heat is lost during the time that the solution iscarried through the pipe 29.

It is apparent from the foregoing apparatus that sheets of metal ofvarying sizes may be coated With tin or other substances to provide apreservative coating, and it is obvious that the mechanism employedconveys the sheets vertically through the bath and equidistantly`betweenthe anodes, thus securing uniform plating of the entire surfaces of eachsheet which are equally exposed.

While I have shown and described the foregoing mechanism as beingsupported by the vat, I prefer at times to have this mechanism entirelyindependent and supported upon an auxiliary framework.'

It is apparent that changes may be made from the construction hereinshown Without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention. I donot, therefore, wish to be limited to the exact construction andarrangements of the parts, but

I desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination of avat holding a solution, mechanism secured to the top of said vat forengaging said sheets of metal, and driving means connected with saidmechanism, said mechanism being ada ated for conveying sheets of metalvertically from one end of the vat to the other end thereof.

2. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination of avat for holding a metallic solution, mechanism secured to the top ofsaid vat for engaging the upper portion of said sheets, and drivingmechanism adapted to be connected therewith, thereby to convey saidsheets of metal vertically from one end of the vat to the other endthereof.

3. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination of avat for holding a solution, a plurality of vertical rotatable memberssuitably supported at the top of said vat, and driving mechanism adaptedto be connected therewith, thereby to convey sheets of metal from oneend of the vat to the other end.

4. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination of avat for holding a solution, a plurality of rotatable rollers mounted insupporting mechanism, said rollers engaging the upper portions of saidsheets of metal, and driving mechanism associated with said rollers andadapted to convey said sheets vertically from one end of the vat to theother. y

5. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination of avat for holding a solution, a plurality of vertical rotatable rollersmounted in supporting members, said members being secured to a barextending longitudinally of the vat, and driving mechanlsm supported insaid frames an( adapted to actuate said rollers, said rollers beingadapted to engage sheets of metal and when actuated to convey saidsheets from one end of the vat to the other end thereof.

6. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination of avat for holding a solution, a plurality of rotatable rollers mounted insupporting frames disposed at suitable distances longitudinally of saidvat, said frames having upwardly extending bearings, a shaft journaledin said bearings, driving means associated with said shaft, said rollersbeing adapted to engage the upper portions of sheets of metal which areto be conveyed vertically from one end of the vat to the other endthereof.

7. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination of avat for holding a solution, cross pieces extending across the vat andadapted to support a bar running lengthwise of said vat, a plurality ofmounting frames secured to said bar and adapted to journal the upperends of rollers, pinions secured to said rollers and adapted to beconnected with driving mechanism, said rollers being adapted to engagesheets of metal to convey said sheets vertically from one end of the vatto the other, and insulated Vinsulation disposed below said .rollers toguide the sheets of metal as they are conveyed vertically by saidrollers from one end of the tank to the other.

9. In apparatus .for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination ofa tank for hold.- ing a solution, a pluralityA of vertically rotatablerollers disposed in sets at the top of said tank, supporting means for.said rollers and means associated therewith for adjusting the relativepositions of said rollers, guides of insulation disposed below saidrollers to guide the sheets of metal as they are conveyed by saidrollers from one end of the tank to the other, and insulating means atthe bottom of said tank for supporting said sheets of metal.

10. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination ofa tank for holding a solution, a plurality of vertically rotatablerollers disposed in sets at the top of said tank, supporting means forsaid rollers and means associated therewith for adjusting the relativepositions of said rollers, guides of insulation disposed below saidrollers to guide the sheets of metal as they are conveyed by saidrollers from one end of the tank to the other, and a strip of glassdisposed at the bottom of said tank and adapted for supporting saidsheets of metal as they are conveyed from one end of the tank to theother end thereof. Y'

11. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination ofa vat for holding a solution, a plurality of vertical rotatable rollersdisposed in pairs at the top of said vat, supporting means for saidrollers and means associated therewith for adjusting the relativepositions of said rollers, guides of insulation disposed below saidrollers to guide the sheets of metal as they are conveyed by saidrollers from one end of the vat to the other, and a strip of insulatingmaterial disposed at the bottom of said vat and adapted for supportingsaid sheets of metal as they are conveyed vertically from one end of thevat to the other end thereof.

12. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination ofa vat for holding a solution,'a plurality of vertical rotatable rollersdisposed in pairs atthe top of said vat, supporting means for saidrollers andmeans associated therewith for adjusting the relativepositions of said rollers, said r0- tatable rollers and the associatedparts therewith being disposed independently of said vat, guides ofinsulation disposed below said rollers to guide the sheets of metal asthey are conveyed by said rollers from one end of the vat to the other,and a strip of glass dis osed at the bottom of said vat and adapte forsupporting said sheets of lnetalas they are conveyed vertically from oneend of the vat to the other end thereof.

13. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination ofa tank for holding a solution, a plurality of vertical rotatable rollersdisposed in sets at the top ofsaid tank, driving mechanism connectedwith said rollers, said rollers and driving lnechanism being supportedupon an auxiliary framework, guides of insulation disposed below saidrollers, to guide the sheets of metal as they are conveyed by saidrollers from one end of the tank to the other, and a strip of insulatingmaterial disposed at the bottom of the tank and adapted for supportingsaid sheets of metalas they are conveyed vertically from one end of thetank to the other end thereof.

14. In apparatus for electroplating sheets of metal, the combination ofa vat for holding a solution, a plurality of vertical rotatable rollersadapted to engage the upper portions of the sheets of metal and disposedin sets at the top of said vat, supporting means for said rollers andmeans associated 4therewith for adjusting the relative positions of saidrollers, all of said parts being supported upon auxiliary mechanismmdependent of said vat, guides of insulation disposed below said rollersto guide the sheets of met-al as they are conveyed by said rollers fromone end of the vat to the other, and a strip of glass dis osed at thebottom of said tank, adapted or supporting said sheets of metal as theyare conveyed vertically from one end of the tank to the other end.

15. In mechanism for electroplating metal sheets, the combination of avat for holding a solution, means for conveying said sheets verticallyand submer ed through the solution to thereby comp etely and uniformlycoat the entire surfaces of the sheets of metal.

16. In mechanism for electroplating metal sheets, the combination with avat for holding a solution, conveying mechanism for carrying said sheetsvertically and submerged through the solution, anodes disposedequidistantly at each side of the metal sheets, said sheets forming thecathodes, and

' a source of current connected therewith for sheets, the combinationwith a vat for holding a solution, vertical rotatable rollers associatedWith driving mechanism for conveying said sheets vertically andsubmerged through the solution, and means associated therewith forcompletely and uniformly coating the entire surface of said sheets ofmetal.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 26th day of JulyA. D., 1907.

HENRY L. HOLLIS.

Witnesses: l

A. HUNTER, LEONARD W. NOVANDER.

